Sportsnet Grill at Toronto Rogers Centre: Great way to catch a ballgame. And you can win a free meal!

TORONTO – Really good food. Really great seats for a ballgame.

The new Sportsnet Grill at the Rogers Centre (just off the lobby of the Marriott City Centre hotel) looks like a big hit so far. The Blue Jays aren’t having their best season, but the restaurant was busy Wednesday and all the window tables overlooking the field at Rogers Centre were taken. The table behind us was packed with young folks celebrating a friend’s 22nd birthday.

The Sportsnet Grill opened earlier this month as a new , 220-seat endeavour for Rogers and replaced a restaurant called Arriba. Not every seat is at the window but on game days you can reserve a window seat for an up-close and personal view from behind the outfield wall, including a birds-eye view of the Blue Jays bullpen and a scattering of sunflower seeds.

Po Boy sandwiches and salad at Sportsnet Grill in Toronto. JIM BYERS PHOTO

They’ll also be doing the odd bit of broadcasting of Sportsnet live programming from the restaurant, which would be fun to see. They already have hosted at least one episode of “Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown.”

The concept behind Sportsnet Grill is “sports food elevated,” and the menu is true to form. Sure, you can order a platter of appetizers with sliders, calamari, wings and fries. But they also offer nice-looking steaks, Caribbean rice bowls, and something called a “Saku Block Tuna Salad” with seared tuna, daikon radish, bean sprouts, caramelized peanuts, seasonal greens and a ginger/soy dressing. Not quite what you’d expect from a sports bar.

I wanted a range, so we tried the nacho platter with added chicken and guacamole, as well as barbequed chicken and a po’ boy sandwich.

The nachos for two ($18, plus $6 for chicken and another $6 for guacamole) are a huge plate with chips, plenty of melted cheese and jalapenos. They were quite good, with nice salsa and sour cream and plenty of chicken. Personally, I think the guacamole could use an upgrade, with fresher-looking chunks of avocado, some onion and more spices.

The Sportsnet Grill at the Rogers Centre offers up great views of the stadium. JIM BYERS PHOTO

The “Tailgate BBQ Chicken” was a large half chicken for $29. It was large, moist and tender, with a zingy bbq sauce. The waitress said it comes with potato salad but my wife asked for a “Field of Greens” salad instead, which they said was no problem. It was a nice bowl of greens with daikon radishes and tomatoes, accompanied by a honey mustard garlic vinaigrette.

I tried the po’ boy sandwich ($21), which had several crispy, fried shrimp in a soft bao bun (Chinese) with pineapple pepper slaw. I’d probably kick up the heat a bit, but I had two nice buns with shrimp and tasty slaw, as well as a very tasty Caesar Salad on the side with plenty of bacon and creamy, garlicky dressing.

There’s a nice selection of beers, including some local craft beer. And plenty of wine and cocktail choices.

It’s a sports bar, but they don’t go overboard. You’ll find photos of Ron MacLean on the wall and pictures of other Toronto sports heroes. Near the washroom is a great, huge likeness of Joe Carter celebrating the 1992 Blue Jays’ World Series win in Atlanta. Inside the men’s room is a photo of Jose Bautista’s famous bat flip in the playoffs a few years ago. The women’s washroom (hey, my wife told me!) has a photo of Canadian soccer star Christine Sinclair.

Nice-looking tacos at Sportsnet Grill in Toronto. PHOTO COURTESY SPORTSNET GRILL

Of course, there are tons of TV screens, many of them quite large. They also pipe in The Fan 590 radio feed so you can get more into the game. You’re behind glass, but if the crowd is loud you’ll get a good feel for the action.

I’ve only sat in the bleachers a couple times at a ball game, but it’s a fun perspective; especially if the home team hits as many homers and doubles as the Jays did Wednesday in their 10-3 shellacking of the Tampa Bay Rays. Toronto infielder Aledmys Diaz hit a three-run homer that landed in the Jays bullpen right below our seats.

Later in the game, Blue Jays rookie Rowdy Tellez made his major league debut and hit a run-scoring double on the first pitch he saw as a big league player. That’s remarkable, but it was even more special as he had just been called up the majors and had lost his mother two weeks ago. Bittersweet, for sure. But wonderful, with a huge round of applause for the big guy when he reached second base and looked up to the heavens.

Sound good? Okay, then, how’s this? I have a $100 gift certificate for the Sportsnet Grill that you can use to take a friend and enjoy a fine meal and perhaps a ball game. It’s valud until July 1, 2019, so you don’t have to rush on down. All you have to do is drop me a line on this blog as a comment or send an email to me (jim@jimbyerstravel.com). Be sure to include your address and full name. To win, you have to answer a skill-testing question: Who was the World Series MVP for the Blue Jays in 1993 when the Jays won their second straight title. Hint: he’s currently a big league manager. And a very nice guy, who I always enjoyed interviewing when I covered the Blue Jays for the Toronto Star.

Good luck!